Third seed Jakub Menšík will go up against seventh seed Sebastián Báez in the final of the 2026 ASB Classic. Heading into the Australian Open next week, both players will be keen to win their first title of the 2026 season. While this is the third career final for Menšík, it will be the 11th for Báez.
Jakub Menšík vs. Sebastián Báez Match Details
Date: Jan. 17, 2026
Tournament: ASB Classic 2026
Round: Final
Venue: ASB Tennis Centre, Auckland, New Zealand
Category: ATP 250
Surface: Hard
Live Telecast: Tennis Channel, TSN, Sky Sports
Menšík vs. Báez Head-to-Head
This is the first time Menšík and Báez will go up against one another on the Tour, and therefore the head-to-head is at 0-0.
Menšík began his 2026 season at the United Cup, where he won his opening match against Casper Ruud but lost his next two matches against Alex de Minaur and Zizou Bergs. At the ASB Classic, he got a bye in the first round, following which he won 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 against Hamad Medjedovic in the second round.
He faced big-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the quarterfinals, winning 6-4,6-2 before beating Fábián Marozsán 7-6 (9), 4-6, 6-1 to reach his third ATP singles final.
Báez has had an impressive start to the 2026 season, winning all of his seven matches so far. The 25-year-old won all of his matches at the United Cup, where Argentina exited in the quarterfinals. This included victories over the likes of Jaume Munar, Taylor Fritz, and Stan Wawrinka.
The Argentine started his ASB Classic campaign with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 win over Emilio Nava in the first round, followed by a 7-5, 6-0 win over Jenson Brooksby in the second round. He caused a massive upset in the quarterfinals, winning 7-5, 6-3 against top seed Ben Shelton before securing a comfortable 6-1, 6-4 win over Marcos Giron to reach his first hard-court final since the 2023 Winston-Salem Open.
Menšík vs. Báez Prediction
Menšík has won 65 percent of the service points and 38 percent of the return points in his semifinal match. The third seed did hit 16 aces in the match, but his serve was vulnerable in the match, as he was broken three times in the match. However, he was at his best during the break point opportunities, breaking his opponent’s serve four times during return games.
Báez won 71 percent of the service points and 50 percent of the return points in his match. The Argentine won 78 percent of the points behind his second serve, which was a key deciding factor in his match. He created as many as 15 break point opportunities in the match, four of which he converted, and faced only two break points on his serve.
MORE: Ben Shelton vs Sebastián Báez Preview: Head-to-Head, Prediction for ASB Classic 2026
Menšík has reached two other hard-court finals in his career, with a big win at last year’s Miami Open, where he upstaged Novak Djokovic. On the other hand, Báez is more of a clay-court player, as ten of his previous eleven finals have come on clay. He does have one hard-court final to his name, where he won the 2023 Winston-Salem Open.
Menšík is the better hard-court player, but in the current form that Báez is in, the Argentine has a good chance of upstaging the Czech in the final. Báez’s return games will be key as that will see the clash of the stronger components of the duo’s respective game styles, Menšík’s serve, and the Argentine’s return. Given the current form, it is the seventh seed who will be the slight favorite in the upcoming match.
Pick– Báez to win in three sets